State Wildlife Grant - T-7-R

This multi-faceted monitoring effort will help identify factors that may lead to colony abandonment or reduced productivity. This effort also will provide basic information on the pelicans' foraging ranges and locations, time budgets, nesting activities, and potential sources of disturbance. Additionally, 10 GPS satellite transmitters deployed on adult pelicans at Chase Lake will help to assess patterns of nest attendance, foraging distances, and foraging site characteristics. Definitive causes of the 2004 abandonment of the Chase Lake colony may never be determined. However, data from transmittered pelicans, surveillance cameras and observers, will contribute to our understanding of pelican biology at the Chase Lake site and other pelican colonies. This effort will provide a foundation for conservation and management decisions that potentially affect the entire North American population of white pelicans.